"A GIAY PLACE AND VERY WICKED

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2367, 25 January 1915, Page 7

"A GIAY PLACE AND VERY WICKED

NEW ZEALANDERS IN EGYPT AN INTERESTING NARRATIVE GAY LIFE IN ALEXANDRIA A member of the Expeditionary Poroe now ou . servioe in Egypt writes an interesting description of his arrival at Alexandria,. (From the Christclrureh. "Sua.'.') Cabbarl, Egypt, December 9,

At Jast we iuve coasod our, sailing pi-' together, and for tlio first tune since September 23 wo have lain our heads on terni firma. The bright colours, ' the J lighthouse, the obelisks, and tho clusr tering masts of a myriad native dhows | turned out, to, be none other than ancient Alexandria,, and hero we are I We entered the harbour in a high state of .expitemen,t, because wo had reserved our disembarkation orders for Egypt. But it was eyfn more, interesting to hear that I' hid been detailed for the. rear party.' .We had to bustle, up, because we were going to the rest camp at Gabbari, in the suburbs, where horses and store's are, distributed as they are required' to the various camps whioh are scattered over the .countryfrom the Pyramids to the coast. Our delight at the novelty of being the first to go ashore knew no bounds. An officer, a sergeant, and' six men formed our party, and. on the arrival of the disembarkation officer we hustled off the wharf .carrying our swags. We climbed into four-wheeler carriages and ( drove, off through the native bazaar's towards our destination. Arrived at Gabbari we found the. rest camp wasn't a'camp at all. So we set to *work erecting tents. Our officer went back to the ship and our regiment. has gone on to, Zegton, leaving me here in oharge of my six gallants. Night Noises. Things had happened bo quickly'. Here we were in Jigypt, sleeping in a marquee beneath the bright, eastern eky, watching the waving date palms through the doorway ana listening, to the strange night noises. We are about a mile from the wharves and a quarter of a~ mile from the railway. A tram (electrio) passes our gate. All these oonspire to make the night hider ous. Not. far away is a small tunnel. On both trams, and /trains' Indians drive, and their great delight is to kick up a-shindy. The loco.'man-Treeps his hand busy pulling tho steam whistle, all along the incline in front of bur § round, and s the tram man clangs his ell inoessautly. ... The moquito's have oaused us grievous torment. My eyes and lips look as though I had been in a street row find had been worsted rather badly. Indeed, -I'm a sight to behold, and I itch, all over.

In our rear are-some 50 acres, fruit and vegetable gardens tended by coolies —a fresh and pretty, sight. In one corner - beneath a group of date palms, is an ancient water-wheel worked, after the manner that Samson worked'the mill when he was taken into captivity. Harnessed to a ,boom:are ;two patient oxen, who tread, all day their circuitous path, aided and abetted occasionally by a -small darkis boy with a whip. Around and beyond the garden are moro date Dalms.. The fruit'is ripening, and sacks enclose the luscious bunches that hang in clusters beneath'the foliage.;

Welcomed by the English. Our arrival in this country was welcomed by tto English people." Though outwardly things ran on in their accustomed course, beneath the surface was a good deal of unrest amongst the Arabs and Egyptians; The Khedive haa left the country on tv ; visit to Turkey, before he left ho gave the English a fortnight to quit. They are still here, though, and he hasn't yet ' returned. This is a. most wonderful country. We have had a good deal of leave here, and have made the :best of it. We have spent our money freely, and I believe, it's worth it to see the place properly whilst we can. Our first night in the city we went under the guidance of , some English Territorials who have 'been*' stationed here since the declaration of war. The sight we saw took our clean away. The sin and degradation are appalling. The unbridled open sin I cannot write about;, it's, much too awful,.;. . Yesterday.- We-took carriageround the pretty suburbs. We had a carriage and pair for, three hours, and' paid 3s. for the trip. : The grove at Ramlegh is truly wonderful. The gardens are a place of beauty. Our driver turned in at the gate, and the panorama took our breath away. The gardens are altogether the most marvellous I've ever seen. European minds plan and niggers carry out; the schemes. They are painfully slow, only they do the jobs most thoroughly. We had tea it the kiosk, which is conducted by a gyrating Greek. It cost us Is. 6d., out-1 .felt compensated, because we'd \lhad fully a shilling's worth of, most Wonderful hospitality. Round the Barracks. ihese Greeks make wonderful hosts. Ours could speak every knguage under the. sun, ana preferred much interesting information. We've been, round all the barracks, too. The barracks' at ■ 'Mustapha were at one time the Khedive's Palace. They overlook a sea teach, and are altogether beautifully situated. It must havo-taken.,years to build. The walls' are yards thick, and it would be possible-to drive a carriage and pair up the winding staircases. The English Territorials are mostly very gentlemanly, and always very courteous. Like us,, they are men from every walk of life who have come away at the.call of their country. Only they ore on army pay—privates Is. lOd. per •Jay, and so on. The barracks up the -liill Kome-el-dik are very solid. A criscross iron fence runs right round to resist an assault, and big 'guns command all approaches. Here, too, the wa|la are of wonderful thickness and solidity. It's a very old barracks, and bears the marks of many famous regiments that"have occupied it. From its ramparts one gets a view of the harbour and the country for miles around. Tho roof is like a barrack square.with heavy sand and soil, and unless one stands on the ramparts it seems as though one stands again upon the ground. Thero are only six regular soldiers in the wholo town. These are the notorious redcaps, military police. They are tho pick of the army, and camp out here with' us. They all hold the rank of corporal, and earn Bs. 6d. per day, ifter serving H.M. the King for 20 years faithfully and :well.

Australians Off The chain. Tile Australian troops have behaved badly here. Of course, when men have been bottled up for weeks on a troopship tliere.is bound to bo steam generated that must find an outlet. But herCj where regular troops are usuallv stationed, it is disgraceful for .the good name of the Army to bo dragged into disrepute. .. . . Wo have dressed our smartest and gone out' spick and sj>an,' and havo earned the New Zealand troops a reputation worthy of tho country. Li fact we''are amused at the way we get saluted. 011 the streets by Australians mlstsMng us'for officers. ' ■ * The Sports Club herp is a great institdtoitu . .. It _ comprises all branches in

tremendous grounds. 11l front are gmndstands and tea kiosks, saddling p&ddpcks, gambling enclosures, and offices and dressing roomß. Round the grounds runs the racecourse. A golf course meanders roughshod across the entire property. On the right eight polo ponies pranced and pawed' the ground as the ball was set in motion across the'sward. In the rear are a dozen tennis courts.: Thero is a very high standard in tennis here, and the gume flourishes exceedingly. The courts are clay, but they are extremely fast, as the ground is almost a sandstone. Then, too, there are hockey, and football grounds, and a oricket pitch. Ail the Bports are very well patronised. In : the Bourse, which is the ootton exchange, all work ceases at noon, and this liberates hundreds of young men all eager for the fresh air. This rule' is also the order of things in all tho large cotton hou6.es in Alexandria. Th» Bourse buildings are colossal. The tram Borvice here is very good and reasonable. Anyone in business here has to be a very competent linguist. English, French, Italian, Spanish Greek, Arabic, tuid various Mohammedan lingoes are the principal. Going Up-Country, On. Saturday we went into an English shop, to maie some small purchases, and tho ; manager was extremely kind and_ courteous. It was close on his closing tipie, and, as we were leg-weary from wandering, we sat down and chatted about our homeland and its various wouders,' and of the journey across the world. Ho closed down, and took us round to the Presbyterian Church, where the dames were dispensing good cheer.

At night wo lay our beds upon the sandstone, and kid it's a feather bed. We are eaten by mosquitps, hopped over by graeshoppersj toads,- and lizards of prodigious size, but still we . survive it. Yesterday we killed a large, black snake, a variety that kills m three hours- after biting.

To-morrow we go up country to Zeetan to our regiment, and our liberty will be at an end. Never mind, whilst it lasted have enjoyed it all! We have risen at 7.30, wnen "Cookie" has brought, the in-bed tea. Breakfast at 8, and a wee bit work to pass the morning. Dine. sumptuously at 1 o'clock, and pass the, afternoon cleaning and polishing: a most elaborate toilet! We then tea, and. sally forth with martial air for the, night. The night-life hero, is great. Everyone is out en fete all: night from- the. lowest to the highest. Women, in- French whirl past in. beautiful motors. There are skatingrinks, picture shows, music-halls, ana •hotels and linking shops in thousands.' It's a. gay. place, and very flicked.